The Attraction Anomaly
by bakerbelle
Summary: Sheldon finds himself attracted to a new girl at the university.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: This will be a Sheldon/OC fic. I apologize in advance to all of you Shenny and Shamy fans. I love both of those ships too, so please don't bash. I think I could probably ship Sheldon/anyone and be happy. ****I hope you will enjoy this anyway. **

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Big Bang Theory or its characters.**

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The Attraction Anomaly

Part 1: The Overdue Monograph Paradox

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Sheldon, Leonard, Howard, and Raj sat at a table in the Caltech cafeteria. Howard was talking about his upcoming trip to the International Space Station.

"Only a few more months and I will literally be out of this world," he said.

Raj looked sad. After all, he'd be losing his best friend for the better part of the summer. This would be the longest they'd been apart since Raj moved to Pasadena and met Howard.

"Yes. We know. You've told us the same thing every day for the past 33 days," Sheldon said exasperatedly. "I don't see why you're so excited about it. A Payload Specialist is not a real astronaut. You're just a glorified optical technician. A poor man's Galileo, if you will."

"Well, excuse me for getting excited about a once in a lifetime opportunity!" exclaimed Howard.

"I can't fault your logic there. The chance of you making a second trip into Earth's orbit is infinitesimal. Saying it is a 'once in a lifetime opportunity' is an accurate assumption."

"Yeah. Thanks, Sheldon." Howard grimaced and went back to eating his lunch.

Sheldon gave a satisfied grin. "You're welcome."

The boys began a discussion on the upcoming _Avengers vs. X-Men_series, and had been talking for a few minutes about their theories on the potential plot, when Leonard realized that Sheldon was not contributing to the conversation. He found it odd, so he asked, "What's wrong, buddy?"

Sheldon stared off into the distance. "Nothing's wrong," he managed to reply dreamily. It was a voice they'd rarely heard from him. It was very much like the voice he used when talking lovingly to his _Flash_#123 (that is, before he lost it to Howard in that ill-fated bet over a cricket's species). After his reply in such a strange voice, the others stopped their conversation and turned in the direction of Sheldon's stare. To their surprise, they saw a girl sitting at the back of the cafeteria. She was alone at a table.

"Dude, I think he's talking about that girl over there hiding behind _Pride and Prejudice_," Raj squeaked out. "Good book." He bobbed his head in agreement with his own statement. The others stared at the girl.

"It's a good thing she's not looking over here. We look like a bunch of weirdoes, guys," Leonard observed. "Maybe we should stop staring." He turned back toward Sheldon, but Howard's eyes lingered a little longer.

"I could go for a piece of that." Howard waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

"Don't let Bernadette hear you say that. Besides, I think our friend here already has his sights set on her." Leonard motioned his head toward Sheldon who was still staring at the girl.

Howard protested, "But Sheldon's already part of The Shamy!"

"Yeah, like that's ever going anywhere," Raj said quietly.

The three friends silently agreed. Sheldon watched as the girl put a bookmark in her book, got up from the table, and walked toward the door. As she passed by their table, she gave a small smile to the still staring Sheldon. He blushed.

* * *

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When she was gone, Sheldon turned back to his food and continued eating as if nothing had happened. The rest of the guys just watched him, perplexed by the event they had just witnessed.

Penny walked into the comic book store and all heads turned toward her. She always felt so humiliated when she walked into the den of nerds at Stuart's shop. The head nerd himself, Stuart Bloom, looked up from his sketchbook and sent an eager smile her way.

"Hiya, Penny! What brings you here?" he asked.

"Hi, Stuart. I just dropped by to grab a present for Howard. His birthday's next week and I thought I might find something for him here. You know, since he likes comics and stuff." She looked around casually to see if there was anything interesting nearby. The plan was to grab the closest thing she could find, buy it, and run out before she was accosted by any of the other customers.

"Oh," Stuart said, sounding slightly disappointed. "Well, we just got a new shipment of belt buckles in. They're in the back. I'll go grab them and you can choose one of those, if you want. He seems to like those."

"That would be great. Thanks." So, it would take a little longer than she'd expected, but that was fine by her. She glanced around the store while Stuart perused his inventory in the back. There weren't very many people there. Maybe this was a slow time of the day? Most of the usual customers probably had jobs during the day. Not everyone was as lucky as she was to sleep late and work in the afternoons. That was probably the only perk of working at The Cheesecake Factory. Well, that and the occasional free cheesecake at the end of the night. After a while, though, free desserts got old.

Her gaze landed on a guy across the room. He wasn't the usual type of guy she imagined would spend an early afternoon at a comic book store. He was tall and muscular with dirty blonde hair. _He looks a little bit like that guy who plays Captain America_, she thought. She couldn't remember the actor's name, but he was hot. So was the guy standing at the other side of the shop, looking at a zombie display. Penny wasn't fond of zombies, especially after listening to Sheldon wax poetic about his zombie survival plans. She rolled her eyes just thinking about it. Then, she slowly made her way over to the guy.

"So, you like Spider-Man?" she asked. He looked up and locked eyes with her.

"Yeah. How'd you know?"

"I saw it on your shirt." She glanced down at his Spider-Man shirt and then looked up again. He was still looking at her eyes.

"Do you like Spider-Man?" He asked her.

"Oh yeah," she lied, "of course! Who doesn't?"

He smiled at her. She hoped he couldn't tell that she was lying. The only thing she knew about the superhero was that Kirsten Dunst was in the movies. And also that there were lots of comic books about him. Stuart walked out at that moment with a box full of belt buckles.

"Here they are. You can look through them if you want."

"Thanks, Stuart," she said as she walked back to the counter and started to look through the box. She found one she thought Howard might like and handed it to Stuart. "I'll take this one."

"Nice choice. And, just for you, I'll make sure he doesn't buy that one before his birthday."

"Great," she said. _Stuart can be really sweet sometimes. Weird, but sweet._

She paid for the buckle and Stuart dropped it in a bag for her. Before she left, she walked back to the hot guy and said, "By the way, I'm Penny."

He shook her offered hand and said, "Brian."

"It's nice to meet you, Brian. I was wondering if you'd like to go out sometime. Grab some coffee or something?" She tilted her head and gave him her best smile.

"Sure. Sounds great! Actually, there's a Spider-Man marathon tomorrow night. Since we're both such big fans, I thought you might like to go with me. They're showing all three movies. How about it?"

The thought of watching three movies in a row about some superhero she cared nothing about was not her idea of a good time. But, spending hours in a dark theater with a hot guy? That was a different story. She could always use a good make out session. "Sure," she said. "That sounds like fun."

They exchanged numbers and she grabbed her bag and headed out the door with a wave to Stuart. _Who knew I'd meet someone at the comic book store?_She was pleasantly surprised and happily drove to work.

An hour later, she got a text from Brian. "Can't wait to discuss the changes they made from comic book to film with another true fan. See ya tomorrow!" What had she gotten herself into now?

* * *

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Later that night, the boys showed up at The Cheesecake Factory for their usual Tuesday night meal. Penny greeted them, took their orders, and went to the kitchen.

As they were sitting there, Sheldon's phone buzzed. He checked it and found an email.

"Well, this is ridiculous. I know I turned in that book last week," he said. He looked up to see the others staring at him, curious. "The university says I have an overdue book. No matter, I'll take care of it tomorrow." He replaced his phone in his pocket.

"So, that girl at lunch was pretty cute, huh, Sheldon?" Leonard asked.

"She displayed the ideal waist to hip ratio considered by our culture to be aesthetically pleasing, so, yes, I suppose you could say she was 'pretty cute,'" Sheldon replied.

"Plus, her hair was shiny," added Raj.

"Whose hair was shiny?" asked Penny as she set their drinks on the table.

"Some girl we saw at lunch today," Howard answered. "Sheldon was giving her the eye."

"Oh, really?" Penny looked at Sheldon.

Sheldon confusedly looked at Howard. "I'm not sure what you mean by that. Why would I physically remove my eye and give it to someone? Your comment makes no sense."

"Not your actual eye, Sweetie. He means that you were looking at her like you thought she was hot," said Penny. "I'm sure that must have been interesting to see," she commented to the others.

"Oh yeah," said Leonard. "I'm sure Amy would be jealous if she had seen it."

"Why would Amy be jealous? How many times do I have to tell you? Amy is a girl and she is my friend, but she is not my girlfriend. There is no reason for her to get jealous over my looking at an attractive woman."

"Dude, you just admitted it! You think she's hot!" quipped Raj.

"Well, yes, I said that earlier. Were you not listening? Good Lord! It's like I'm hanging out with Neanderthals." Sheldon shook his head and took a drink of his lemonade.

"Well, I met someone today too," Penny announced. "There was this cute guy at the comic book store and -"

"You went to the comic book store?" Leonard asked in awe. "Alone?"

"Yeah. I needed something. Anyway, I met this guy there and he asked me out. We're going to see some Spider-Man marathon tomorrow night."

"That's cool," said Leonard, trying his best to not sound jealous.

"Yeah," Penny said. "The only problem is that I kinda told him that I'm a big Spider-Man fan and now he wants to talk about the comic books and stuff and I don't know what to do. Any ideas?"

"You could always read the comic books," Sheldon suggested. "But, you can't borrow mine. Leonard would probably lend you his, as he's always trying to find new ways to get you to once again engage in coitus with him."

"How many of them are there?" Penny asked, ignoring Sheldon's comment.

"Over 1,000," Leonard said.

Penny looked at Sheldon like he was insane. "You expect me to read 1,000 comic books in one night? Um, no."

Sheldon just shrugged his shoulders.

Raj took a sip of his beer and said, "Wikipedia?"

"That's a little more my style, but how will I remember all of it? I want to sound like I know what I'm talking about."

They thought about Penny's problems while she went to check on their food in the kitchen and refill drinks at another table. When she returned with their food, Howard said, "We've been brainstorming, and I think I have an idea."

* * *

**A/N – This takes place in the fall of 2011, after the episode "The Ornithophobia Diffusion," so _Avengers vs. X-Men_ had not come out yet. Also, I don't read many comic books, so you'll have to excuse me if I'm a bit vague on details.**

**This is only my second fic and my first chapter fic. Part 1 will continue in the next chapter. Thanks for reading****. **


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you for the reviews, favorites, alerts, and encouragements so far! It was unexpected and much appreciated. Now, without further ado, here is the second half of Part 1.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Big Bang Theory or its characters.**

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Sheldon walked into the library and made his way to the circulation desk. An undergraduate student worker sat up straight in his seat and asked Sheldon, "Can I help you with anything, sir?"

"Yes. You can point me to a librarian. Preferably someone who can tell me why the library believes that a book I turned in last week is overdue."

The flustered student stood up and, while explaining to Sheldon that he would be right back, walked through the door behind the desk. A moment later, the student returned. Behind him was a woman in a black oxford shirt and a khaki pencil skirt, her dark brown hair pulled into a ponytail. Sheldon instantly recognized her as the girl from the cafeteria the day before. She smiled at him and said, "I think you scared Kevin here, but perhaps I can help you."

Sheldon stood still and stared at the woman for a few seconds. Then, he shook himself out of his thoughts and said, "I assume you are a librarian here?"

"Yes, I am."

"Very well. I received an email yesterday informing me that I have an overdue book. I do not have an overdue book. I brought the book in question back last week. I believe someone here neglected to check it in and now I have a fine." He shifted his eyes toward the poor undergrad at the end of the desk. "I suspect he may be the one at fault." He glared at Kevin. Kevin shifted in his seat and looked away.

"I'm sorry, Mr. -"

"_Dr._ Cooper."

"Oh," she said. "Dr. Cooper, then. I'm sorry that you're having this problem. If you turned it in last week, I imagine the book's been re-shelved already. I'll gladly go upstairs and see if I can find it. If you tell me your ID number, I can look you up in the computer and find the call number."

She walked over to the computer at the circulation desk, apologized to Kevin under her breath, and typed in the information as Sheldon gave it to her. She wrote down the call number and told him. "I'll just run upstairs and look for it real quick."

He watched as she walked away, then he found a seat nearby and sat down while he waited for her return. A few minutes later, she walked up to him with the book in her hand.

"I found it," she said as she waved the book in the air.

"Yes. I see. Now that you see a mistake has been made, please fix it."

"How do I know you didn't bring it in late, put it on the shelf yourself, and just tell me you brought it back last week?" she asked him playfully. She raised an eyebrow and gave him a cheeky grin.

His ears suddenly turned red and he said through his teeth, "How dare you accuse me of lying."

She leaned back in shock and her eyes widened. "I was only pulling your leg. It was a joke." She laughed nervously. He didn't look happy. "I didn't really mean to accuse you of anything."

He looked her straight in the eye and said, "That was very unprofessional. And very rude."

She looked uncomfortable at his response. "I'm really sorry. I didn't mean to get you up in arms. It's just that I'm new here and you're the first library patron I've interacted with. I didn't mean to overstep my boundaries, honest. I was only trying to make a friendly joke."

"With whom you've interacted. And we're not friends," he said.

"I'm sorry?" she asked.

"It's 'with whom you've interacted.' You ended your sentence with a preposition."

She had to stop herself from rolling her eyes. "Oh, you're one of _those_ people." She could be just snippy too, if that's the way he wanted it.

"Ex_cuse_ me?"

"You know," she said. "A stickler for perfect grammar."

"No, I'm a stickler for perfect everything."

She laughed, but quickly realized he wasn't joking by the grumpy look on his face. "Oh. Are you a Virgo, then?"

"I don't believe in astrological hokum," he replied.

"I didn't ask if you believed in it. I was just curious about your sign."

"That's really none of your business, but if you must know, my birthday falls under the sign of Taurus," he answered.

"Hmm... you seem more like a Virgo to me, what with your perfectionism."

"I don't see why any of that matters," he said.

She smiled at him. "Oh, it _doesn't_ matter. I was just trying to make small talk."

By this point, he was ready to get out of this pointless conversation. Exasperated, he said, "I find small talk unnecessary and this conversation tedious. Please remove my overdue fine. I wish to no longer have it on my record."

"I'll get right on it," she said, forcing a smile.

He didn't thank her for her trouble. He simply walked away and out the library door. She visibly relaxed, shook her head, and walked back to her office to clear his record. She also made a note to herself. _Avoid flirting with Dr. Sheldon Cooper. Enter conversation at own risk._

* * *

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Thirty minutes before her big date, Penny met up with Howard and Raj at the movie theater to go over their plan. Leonard decided not to help, mainly due to the fact that he didn't want to see Penny on a date with another guy. Sheldon decided not to help because he just didn't want to do it. So, Penny's date depended on Howard and Raj. What could possibly go wrong?

"Now, here's what we're gonna do," Howard said. "You take this and put it in your ear." He handed her the small earpiece. "Clip this onto your shirt." He gave her a small brooch in the shape of a spider.

"Really, Howard? You expect me to wear this? It's hideous!"

"Yeah, but it's a spider. Your date will like it."

"Whatever," she said. She put the earpiece in and pinned the brooch to her shirt. "Ugh, I look like an old lady."

Howard sighed. "Well, it was the best I could do on such short notice. Now, inside the spider is a microphone. Raj and I will be able to hear everything you and your date say."

"Wait, does this mean you're gonna hear it if we start making out?" Penny cried.

"Well, yeah, but there's really no way around it. You want to impress the guy, right?" He asked.

"Yeah," she replied.

"Then this is the best way."

Penny thought about it for a few seconds. "Ok. But I'm taking this damn brooch off if we start kissing."

"Doesn't matter," Howard said. "We'll be sitting a few rows behind you. We'll be able to see it anyway."

"Eww." Penny looked disgusted while Howard smiled. "So, how is this supposed to work?" Penny asked.

"It's simple. Raj and I will listen to you and your date talk about Spider-Man, and we'll relay our knowledge of the web slinger to you through the earpiece."

"So, it'll be like _Cyrano de Bergerac_!" Penny exclaimed happily.

"How do you know what that is?" Howard asked.

She looked at Howard condescendingly. "It's a play. I'm an actress. Duh." She thought about their plan for a minute, pointed her finger in Howard's face, then in Raj's, and said, "Just so you know, if you make any lewd comments or try to hit on me through this thing, I will go junior rodeo on your asses. Got it?"

Howard and Raj both nodded.

"Okay. Good." She relaxed. "I think this could actually work. Should we test it out?" Penny asked, but she looked up to see Brian walking down the street. "Oh, too late. Here he comes."

Raj and Howard went inside the theater before Brian walked up. Penny waved at him as he came closer.

"Hi there," she said.

"Hey. So are you ready to see the coolest superhero on the big screen?" he asked.

She smiled brightly and said, "Yep."

"You look smokin', by the way. I like the pin." He looked at it a bit longer than necessary. When she caught him staring at her cleavage, he didn't blush or apologize. Penny thought that was a bit odd, but it quickly left her mind as they went inside. Walking down the theater aisle, she spotted Howard and Raj near the back. Raj gave her two thumbs up.

They found their seats and got comfortable. "So, Brian, what do you do for a living?"

"Oh, I'm sorta between jobs right now," he said.

_I guess that explains why he was in the comic book store on a weekday afternoon, _Penny thought.

"What about you?" he asked her.

"I'm an actress," she replied.

"Cool. Have you been in anything I've seen?"

"Um, probably not. I haven't had much luck with auditions lately."

"Oh, so what you mean is you're a failed actress." He laughed to himself. Penny didn't find his comment funny. She gave him the side eye, but said nothing. "So, what do you really do? You know, since you're not getting paid to act."

"I'm a waitress."

"Of course. All the hot blondes in L.A. are waitresses," he said.

It was obvious to Penny that this date was off to a rocky start. She thought it might be time to try and impress him with her (or Howard's and Raj's) knowledge of Spider-Man. _Help me out guys._ "So, are you still excited to see the movies?" she asked him.

"Oh yeah. Definitely. There are so many things wrong with them, but they're really fun films. Only a true fan can look at them with a critical eye and still love them."

"Uh-huh. Sure."

Before they could say another word, the lights went out and the first movie started. When Kirsten Dunst first came on screen, Brian talked about the fact that MJ wasn't Peter Parker's first love interest, and that she didn't even appear until _The Amazing Spider-Man_ #42. It was such a travesty that Gwen Stacy didn't show up until the third film. Howard told her to say that they also missed out on getting to hear, "Face it, Tiger... you just hit the jackpot!" That got an enthusiastic response from Brian.

Howard and Raj helped her through the first two movies with no problem. She even enjoyed the films and thought it might not be such a bad date after all, despite the comments Brian had made to her earlier. He bought them snacks before the third movie started, so they munched on popcorn while Mary Jane and Peter watched a meteor shower on-screen.

Everything was fine until Howard got a phone call. He looked at his phone, then at Raj. "I have to answer this," he said. "Take over 'til I get back." He handed Raj his earpiece and the microphone and he left the room.

A few minutes later, Penny whispered into her brooch, "Howard, who's the photographer guy?" but she didn't get an answer. She whispered Howard's name a little louder, but still didn't receive an answer.

"Did you say something?" Brian asked.

"No. I didn't say anything," she lied. Penny casually glanced over her shoulder and saw Raj, but no Howard. Raj sheepishly smiled and shrugged his shoulders. _Great. I'm stuck with the mute._ She hoped nothing important happened while Howard was gone.

After a while, Brian asked, "So, what are your thoughts on Venom?"

Penny didn't know what to say. She stammered something unintelligible.

"I didn't quite catch that."

"Oh, I said," Penny paused, trying to think of something non-committal to say, "it's a shame that they, uh, did it that way."

"What do you mean?" he asked.

"Well, you know." She laughed uncomfortably. "It's like -"

She was interrupted by feedback in her earpiece. Howard had returned and the nearness of his phone to the microphone had caused a high pitched squeal. Penny cupped her hand over her ear and grimaced.

"What the hell?" Brian exclaimed. "What's that in your ear?"

"Oh, it's nothing," Penny replied, trying to act casual. "Just, um, Bluetooth!"

"That's not Bluetooth." Brian snatched the earpiece from her ear and looked at it.

Meanwhile, Howard had finally sat down and asked Raj, "So, what did I miss?"

Raj had a look of fright on his face. He pointed to the scene a few rows in front of them. They both turned and looked to see Brian bringing the equipment up to his own ear.

Brian heard two things. The first was, "Dude, we're busted." The second was, "Oy vey!" He slowly looked behind him to see the culprits.

"Penny, what is going on here?" He asked.

The look of anger on his face was alarming. Penny tried to explain what was happening. "Well, you see, I don't really know much about comic books, but I really wanted to hang out with you, so I asked some friends to help me out on our date."

"You lied to me?"

"Yeah. Just a little. I just wanted you to like me."

"You don't know anything about Spider-Man, do you?" He asked.

"No. Not really. I mean, I know there are lots of comic books about him." She half-smiled, still trying to save the situation.

"I should have known," he scoffed and shook his head. "You're just a dumb blonde, like all the other 'actresses' out there."

Penny gaped at him for a few seconds, finding herself momentarily unable to speak. "Oh yeah?" she finally managed to yell. "Well you're a JERK! And this movie SUCKS!" With that, she poured the rest of her popcorn on Brian's head, grabbed her purse, and walked out of the theater. Howard and Raj quickly jumped out of their seats and followed.

Once they were in the lobby, Howard looked over to see the furious look on Penny's face. She narrowed her eyes when she saw him looking. "You were supposed to be helping me. Where the hell did you go?"

"Sorry. I had a really important call. Bernadette was upset when she got off work and she needed to talk to me. I had to calm her down."

Penny knew she couldn't stay angry at him, especially where Bernadette was concerned. Her face slowly softened as she took a few deep breaths. Her shoulders relaxed. "It's okay, Howard. The date wasn't going so great anyway. He was a jerk. Kept staring at my chest and called me dumb. Plus, he laughed when I told him I'm an actress."

"If it makes you feel better, you're hot when you're angry," Howard said and winked at her.

She glared at Howard and crossed arms. They all stood there for a minute in silence. Then suddenly, Penny started laughing.

"What's so funny?" Howard asked.

She looked at her two friends and smiled. "I was just thinking of how hilarious Brian looked with popcorn stuck in his hair." She laughed again and they both joined her.

* * *

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Leonard and Sheldon walked up the stairs in their apartment building, bags full of Chinese food in their hands.

"I was thinking that tonight we should play Mario Kart 64," said Sheldon with excitement. "While I wouldn't necessarily call it 'vintage,' it's over ten years old and still a delight to play. I'll get the Nintendo 64 and the controllers out of the closet before everyone arrives."

"That actually sounds pretty fun," said a surprised Leonard.

"Of course it does," Sheldon quipped. "Who can resist a race down Rainbow Road?"

"Just try not to push me over the side of the bridge so much this time, okay?"

"But, Leonard, that would take away the competitive edge!"

"Fine." Leonard trudged up the steps a little less happily than before.

When they were rounding the corner to the third floor landing, they heard Penny's voice. "Wow. So, you like Star Wars? I didn't know girls were really into that."

"I wouldn't say I'm a huge fan, but I like the movies," came a second feminine voice. "Well, the original ones anyway."

Leonard and Sheldon looked at each other in confusion as they stepped onto the landing. The door to 3B was open and Penny was standing inside the apartment. She was speaking to a brunette girl who was unpacking a box of DVDs and stacking them on a coffee table. The boys approached cautiously.

"Penny?" Leonard asked. "What are you doing down here?"

Penny spun around. "Oh, hi guys! I was just talking to our new neighbor. She just moved in earlier this week."

"Oh, I didn't know we had a new neighbor."

"Yep," she said. "This is Julie. Julie, this is Leonard and Sheldon. They live in 4A."

Penny moved to the side and they got a better glimpse of the woman named Julie. She was wearing jeans and a black tank top and had her dark hair pulled up into a ponytail. She smiled at the two boys, then she suddenly frowned.

"Oh, it's you, Dr. Cooper," she said.

Leonard and Penny looked confused as they watched the meeting. Finally, Leonard said, "Wait. Is that..."

"Yes, Leonard. You've seen her before," Sheldon confirmed. "She's a librarian at Caltech and apparently frequents our cafeteria."

Penny still looked confused. "So, you two have met?"

"Unfortunately," they said at the same time.

"Oh boy," said Leonard. "This is going to be interesting."

End Part 1

* * *

**A/N: I didn't realize this chapter would be so long! I'm not sure the dialogue turned out as well as I would have liked. I'm a little rusty. I hope you enjoyed it anyway. It may take a little longer to get Part 2 up, since I'm having trouble with some of the plot. But, I'm working on it.**


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Big Bang Theory or its characters.**

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Part 2: The Southern Vampire Absurdity

"Why did you invite _that woman_ here?" Sheldon complained. He and Leonard were in their apartment, waiting for their friends to arrive for Chinese food and vintage game night. The takeout boxes were already arranged on the coffee table in preparation for their meal.

"I thought she was nice," Leonard replied. "I don't get why you're so mad about it. "

"She is rude and I don't like her." Sheldon sat in his spot with his arms crossed and a scowl on his face.

"You've talked to her twice. You can't know that."

Sheldon looked unimpressed. A knock at the door stopped their conversation. Howard, Bernadette, and Raj came in. Raj immediately went to the kitchen to grab a beer, popped the top, and took a gulp. "Ahh, much better," he said and smiled.

Another knock sounded and Amy entered. "Hello, everyone." The others waved as she walked over to sit next to Sheldon.

"Ok, I'm here," Penny said as she came through the door a few minutes later. She looked around, "Where's Julie? Did Sheldon scare her off?"

"Hey, bestie," Amy said with a smile. "Who's Julie?"

Sheldon replied, "Our new downstairs neighbor. Leonard invited her to dine with us tonight, but," he looked at his watch, "as it is now 7:01, she is late."

"And get this, she's the girl we saw in the cafeteria at work Tuesday," Leonard added.

"Wow," Howard said. "What a weird coincidence."

They heard a knock and Penny, who had not yet sat down, opened the door and welcomed Julie in.

"As I was just telling the others," Sheldon stated, "you're late."

"I thought you said 7," Julie replied.

"Yes, and it is now 7:02."

"Only two minutes? That's no big deal," she said.

Sheldon mumbled something about inconsiderate people, but Julie paid no attention to him. She was busy looking around at all the others in the room.

Penny decided to make the introductions. "Julie, this is Raj, Howard, Bernadette, Amy, and you've already met Sheldon and Leonard." She pointed to each of them as she called their names.

Julie nodded and waved at the group. "Hi."

"I'm sorry we don't have many places to sit. If you want, you can sit on one of the stools." Leonard pointed toward the kitchen island and the two stools there.

"Actually, I'm fine with sitting in the floor," she said as she lowered herself beside Raj.

"Ok. Well, just grab whatever food you want," Leonard said. "We'll all share tonight. There's plenty to go around."

Sheldon snorted with contempt. "I have no intentions of doling my food out willy nilly."

Most of the people in the room rolled their eyes. Julie frowned briefly, but was relieved when Bernadette pushed the dumplings her way.

Raj smiled at her. "So, Julie, what do you do?" he asked.

"Oh, I just started work at Caltech. I'm a librarian. Penny said y'all work there too?"

Howard spoke up. "Yeah, most of us work there."

"That's pretty cool." She looked at Howard and Bernadette. "I also hear you two are engaged. When do you plan on getting married?"

"Oh, we haven't set a date yet," Bernadette replied in her tiny voice. "I'm sure we'll figure it out soon."

"That's nice." Julie nervously pushed the rice around on her plate, then looked at Amy and Sheldon. "And, how long have you two been together?"

Sheldon glared at Penny. "I believe you were misinformed. Amy is a girl and she is my friend. She is not my girlfriend."

"Not for lack of trying," Amy retorted. "So, where are you from, Julie? With your accent, I would presume somewhere in the South."

"Yep," Julie replied. "Alabama. I tried to get rid of the accent, but it still pops up from time to time."

"I think it's cute," Raj proclaimed. "Much cuter than Sheldon's."

"Oh, are you from the South, too?" she excitedly asked Sheldon.

"I'm from Texas," he deadpanned.

"Well, that's neat," she said cheerily. "It's nice to hang out with fellow Southerner." She smiled at him. He looked at his food intently, but she thought she saw the hint of a grin.

When they were finished with their meal, Sheldon turned on the television. The controllers were already plugged into the console, ready to be used. He inserted the game cartridge, turned on the Nintendo 64, and sat back in his spot.

"Will you be joining in our game tonight, Julie?" asked Leonard.

"What are you playing?"

"Mario Kart 64," Sheldon answered.

"Really? Heck yes, I'll play!"

"Here," Sheldon said handing her a controller. "You can play the first round, since you're new."

"Thanks!"

"Besides," Sheldon added, "Amy and Bernadette don't play video games, Penny has enough trouble driving her own car, there's no telling how she would fare in the virtual world, and Raj has been drinking." Raj lifted his beer and smiled. "We can't have him on the road in his condition."

Julie just laughed. Leonard and Howard grabbed the other two controllers and they prepared to play. The game started and they chose their characters. Sheldon chose Bowser, of course. Leonard chose Mario. Howard had trouble picking, but he eventually decided on Toad.

Julie was the last to pick. When Raj asked why she picked Donkey Kong, she replied, "It's easier to ram people off the track! Plus, he's a gorilla. Who doesn't love gorillas?"

Sheldon looked impressed. Hours later, after everyone had gone home, Sheldon admitted to Leonard that he may have misjudged their new neighbor. "Perhaps she's not so bad after all."

* * *

.

While getting ready for bed that night, Howard and Bernadette discussed wedding plans. They hadn't really given any serious thought to the wedding date yet, but after Julie brought it up at dinner, they had both been mulling it over.

"I guess we should at least figure out a better time frame than 'eventually,'" Howard said, pulling down the covers.

"Yeah. But, we'll have to keep a lot of things into consideration." They both got into bed and Bernadette set her glasses on the table next to her.

"Like what?" Howard asked.

"Well, I don't want it near any big holidays," she said. He thought about it for a second and nodded his agreement.

"HOWAHD," they heard Mrs. Wolowitz yell from downstairs.

"YES, MA," Howard yelled back.

"DON'T FORGET YOU HAVE TA TAKE ME TO MY WATAH AEROBICS CLASS TOMORRAH."

Howard shuddered at the thought of a group of obese women flapping their arms in a swimming pool. "HOW COULD I FORGET, MA? YOU'VE REMINDED ME FIVE TIMES TODAY!"

"WELL EXCUSE ME, MISTA SMAHTY-PANTS!"

Howard rolled his eyes and Bernadette giggled. "OKAY. I WON'T FORGET." He settled into the bed, and pulled Bernadette close to him. "Oh yeah, and we have to plan it for before the launch, too."

"Have to?" Bernadette asked with a frown.

"Well, yeah."

"I thought it might be better if we waited until you got back," Bernadette stated.

Howard looked at his fiancée with confusion. "Why would we wait?"

"Well, it would give us even more time to get everything ready."

"But, I'll only be in space for three weeks. Why not just do it before?"

"BECAUSE I SAID SO, THAT'S WHY!" she yelled angrily.

Mrs. Wolowitz heard her future daughter-in-law. "YOU TWO KEEP IT DOWN UP THERE. YOU KNOW I DON'T LIKE SHOUTIN' IN MY HOUSE," she said.

'OKAY, MA," Howard yelled back. He turned back to Bernadette. "You don't have to get upset about it. I thought you'd want to get married as soon as possible. We still have plenty of time to plan everything before the launch. It's in May, after all."

"I don't want to discuss this anymore tonight, Howard."

She turned over to face away from him. He looked shocked and confused. He tried to cuddle with her, but she shrugged him off. With a sigh, he rolled onto his back and stared at the ceiling. It was an hour later when he finally fell asleep.

* * *

.

Penny was glad to have Saturday off. Her plan to sleep late went off without a hitch. She got up around 11 and had her usual cup of coffee before turning on the tv. She had just popped in a DVD when she heard a knock at her door. She breathed a sigh of relief when she realized it wasn't Sheldon. She got up and opened the door to see Leonard standing in the hallway.

"Hey, Penny," he said. "Sheldon just kicked me out of the apartment. Mind if I hang out with you for a while?"

"Sure. Come on in." He came in and they sat down together on her loveseat. "So, what happened?" she asked.

"I was vacuuming the apartment this morning and the canister came loose. Dirt went everywhere. Sheldon kicked me out so he can clean properly."

Penny laughed. "I'm sorry, sweetie."

"It _was_ pretty fun to see the look on his face when it happened though." He joined in the laughter.

"Well, you can stay here as long as you need. I was about to have a _True Blood_ marathon, but we can watch something else."

"No, that's fine. I like _True Blood_. Sheldon banned it from the apartment, so I have to watch it in secret."

"Why doesn't he like it?"

"Because 'vampires are improbable and the accents in the show are atrocious,'" he said, mimicking his roommate.

"Ah, but how can you not love when Bill says 'Sookeh'?" she asked, doing her best impersonation of Bill Compton.

"I know!" he cried. After thinking about it, he added, "I think he's also creeped out by all the vampire sex scenes."

"Makes sense. So which season do you want to watch?"

"How about the first one. It's been a while since I've seen it."

"Good. That's the one I wanted to watch, too." She put the disc in the player and they settled in to watch the show.

* * *

**A/N: When I was choosing which characters the gang would use in Mario Kart 64, I kept imagining that Raj would choose Yoshi. I don't know why. The second half of Part 2 should be up in a few days. Thanks to everyone who has read, reviewed, favorited, set alerts, and sent encouragement my way. You are all wonderful and I hope you will keep reading.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Big Bang Theory or its characters.**

.

Amy had never been to Raj's apartment before, but she had received a text message from Howard to come by for a late lunch. She could smell garlic bread before she even reached the door. Her stomach grumbled. She quickly knocked and heard a friendly voice from within informing her that the door was unlocked. She entered the apartment and was happy to see that Howard and Bernadette were already there.

"Hey, Amy," Bernadette said.

"Hello" Amy replied stoically.

Howard spoke up. "I wanted you to meet with us today so we can discuss wedding stuff, since you're the Maid of Honor. Raj cooked."

"Ok. That sounds acceptable." She sat down at the small dining table with her three friends. Raj handed her a glass of wine and she noticed he'd already been sipping his.

"I hope you like Italian, Amy," he said. She nodded.

They filled their plates and began to eat while they talked about work and other trivial things. Eventually, Howard brought up the subject of the wedding. "So, Bernadette and I need your help. We've been trying to decide on a date for the wedding and we've come to an impasse."

"You can say that again," Bernadette murmured under her breath.

Howard looked at her in bewilderment, but continued his explanation. "I say we should get married before I go into space and she thinks we should wait until I get back."

Amy looked at Bernadette and asked, "Why do you want to wait so long?"

"It will give us more time to prepare for everything," she replied.

"But, like I said last night, Bernie," Howard said, "we'll have plenty of time to plan everything and have the wedding and honeymoon before the launch in May. Why would you want to wait an extra month or longer to get married?"

Bernadette threw her fork onto the table and stood up. "Because I don't want to be a widow!" she exclaimed before running toward the bathroom with her hands covering her face.

Howard, Amy, and Raj were all shocked.

"I slave over a hot stove all day and this is the thanks I get," Raj said, shaking his head.

"I'll go talk to her," Amy said. "The good news is, I think our menstrual cycles may have finally synced up!" With that, she walked out of the room to check on Bernadette while the boys looked at her with disgust.

"Wow, Dude," said Raj. "I haven't seen Bernadette that worked up since your mom was in the hospital."

"Yeah, she's not usually like this."Howard stood up and walked from the table to the couch, abandoning his meal. Raj sat beside him.

"She's just scared of losing you," he said. "I think we're all a little scared of that, to be honest. Going to space can be dangerous."He looked concerned.

"I know." Howard looked at his friend. "I have two dreams. One is to go into space and the other is to marry Bernadette. I should be the luckiest guy in the world right now. Instead, I don't know what to do. I don't want to wait that long to marry her. I love her. And what if something does go wrong and I die? What will happen to her then? I need to know that she's going to be taken care of if something happens to me. I worry about that all the time."

"Then, why haven't you told her?"

"I don't know. I guess I thought she already knew." He sighed. "I want to be married to her more than anything."The look of determination on his face almost scared his best friend.

Meanwhile, Amy knocked on the bathroom door. "Bernadette, may I come in?"

The door opened a crack and she stepped inside. Her friend was sitting on the floor, dabbing her eyes with toilet paper. Amy sat down beside her.

"I didn't mean to ruin dinner for everyone. I just couldn't help it."

"Oh, it's okay. I've never seen anyone storm out of a room like that in real life. It was quite exhilarating," Amy confessed.

Bernadette sniffled and asked, "What am I going to do, Amy? I get scared every time Howie mentions his mission. I want to marry him so badly, but I don't want to see him die in some fiery explosion." She looked down at her hands in her lap and started tearing the tissue into tiny pieces. "I don't know what I'd do if I lost him. I don't want to be happily married for a month and then be left behind if something bad happens to him. Am I being selfish, Amy?"

"Yes," Amy answered, to Bernadette's surprise. "This is how I see it. He could get hit by a car and die tomorrow. Would it matter if you were married or not then?"

"Well, no, I guess not."

"Then why does it matter if you wait or not? Let's say he doesn't come back from space and you remember this fight later. Are you going to say, 'Well, I'm glad I didn't marry the man I love,' or are you going to say, 'I wish I had married him, since that's what he wanted'? I think it would be the latter."

"I think so too. I hadn't thought of it that way. He's the one who might not be coming back. I'd rather know that I made him happy, even if it's only for a brief time. Thanks, Amy."

"It's what a good Maid of Honor would do." She smiled and helped her friend up off the floor. They walked out of the bathroom together and joined the boys. Howard was sitting on the couch with his head down. Raj had an arm around his shoulder. They both looked up when the girls came in. Howard stood and Bernadette walked over to him.

Howard spoke first. "Bernadette, I love you and I want to marry you as soon as possible. If you want to wait until I return from space, I'm okay with that. I just want you to be happy."

"No," she said. "I don't want to wait that long. Let's get married before you go. I'm sorry for yelling at you. I was just scared."

"It's okay. I'm scared, too. But, I think I'll be a lot less scared knowing that my beautiful wife is waiting for me when I get home."

"I can live with that," she said with a small smile.

"Okay. Let's plan this wedding!" Raj said excitedly.

While Howard and Bernadette hugged, Amy said to Raj, "Now that I've helped out Bernadette, I feel the need to offer my services to you." Raj looked at her suspiciously. "If you ever decide that you want to find a cure for your selective mutism, I believe I may be of assistance. I am a neuroscientist, after all."

"Thank you, Amy. I'll think about it."

* * *

.

Penny placed the popcorn bowl on her coffee table and looked over at Leonard. "I'm glad we did this. It was fun," she said.

Leonard nodded and said, "Yeah, me too."

"It was much better than the last time we tried to hang out, just the two of us," Penny stated. They both thought back on that night.

They had tried hanging out just as friends. They went to the movies and found themselves arguing over which film to see. During their argument, Leonard revealed that the only reason he had let her choose the movies while they were dating was due to the prospect of sex at the end of the night. She was appalled, but let him pick the movie for once. She wasn't happy about it, but she let it go. She was even less thrilled that he made her pay for her own ticket. After the movie, they had ventured to a bar where he made her buy her own food. Since it wasn't a date, she flirted with the guy at the table behind her. Jealousy made Leonard flirt with another girl. By the end of the night, they were angry at each other and had decided that maybe it wasn't as easy as they had first thought, hanging out just as friends.

"Yeah, I'm sorry about that night," Leonard said.

"Me too."

Leonard thought about it for a minute and said, "I guess I was just a little jealous and selfish. I was a bit of a jerk."

"Yeah, you were, " Penny said, catching Leonard by surprise. Finally, she admitted, "But, I was too."

"Maybe we could start over." Penny looked at him suspiciously. "I mean, just as friends. Hang out like this. Find out what we have in common."

"Yeah. Get to know each other instead of jumping into bed together." She thought for a moment and asked, "Can I be honest with you, Leonard?"

"Of course you can," he replied.

"I always felt like you only dated me for sex. Like I was just the trophy girlfriend. I didn't feel like you really knew me. I think that's why I was so surprised when you said you loved me."

Leonard had the decency to look ashamed. "I'm sorry I made you feel that way. As much as I hate to say it, I think you may be right. I was so excited to be sleeping with the hot blonde next door that I didn't get a chance to really find out what you like and don't like."

They sat in silence for a few minutes. Penny picked through the nearly empty bowl of popcorn while Leonard nervously drummed his fingers on his knee.

She looked over at him and said, "I think hanging out together like this is a good idea. Maybe once a week we can do this, just as friends. See where it goes. If we decide that we only want to be friends, we'll be friends. If we decide we want to be something more…" she let the sentence trail off.

He nodded, "Okay. So, it'll be like a 'friend date.' Until we figure things out." He looked away from her briefly, then asked, "I guess sex is off the table then?"

"It's not even in the same room as the table."

"I can live with that, " he said and smiled at her. She smiled back.

* * *

.

Monday was Thai food night in Apartment 4A. The whole gang was there, as usual, including their most recent acquaintance, Julie. Once everyone was settled, Howard and Bernadette felt it was time to make an announcement.

"Bernie and I have set a date for the wedding," said Howard. All eyes were on him now. "I hope none of you have plans for April 21st."

Leonard replied, "Wow. So, Howard Wolowitz is actually going to get married. Never thought I'd see the day." He smiled at the couple.

Everyone chatted about the wedding. Even Sheldon chimed in, asking if they will be known as Dr. and _Mr. _Wolowitz after the wedding. Howard glared at him.

At the end of the meal, Sheldon gathered his leftovers and walked to the kitchen to place them in the refrigerator. Amy followed him, wanting to talk in private.

"Sheldon," she said, once they were out of earshot of the others, "I'd like to discuss our relationship."

"What do you mean?" he asked her, with a quizzical look and his head cocked to one side.

"Well, it has come to my attention that you are physically attracted to Julie."

"I am no such thing!" he exclaimed a little too loudly.

"I beg to differ. I noticed you had a pupillary response when she walked into the apartment."

"Perhaps I had come from a brightly lit area of the apartment just before she arrived, and my eyes were adjusting to the low light," he responded.

Amy looked unconvinced. "You've repeatedly wiped your hands on your pants tonight, indicating an increase in the secretions of the sudoriferous glands of your palms."

"I've been a bit feverish tonight, that's all. I probably picked up some bug from your Cornhusker 'bestie.'"

"You've been speaking in a lower register than normal all night."

"Have not!' he purposefully squeaked.

"You're blushing, Sheldon," Amy said.

"As I said before, I think I have an illness."

Amy shook her head and laughed. "I thought you, of all people, would understand the scientific reasoning behind all of your physiological symptoms, but I was wrong."

"Darn tootin', you're wrong," he said, slipping into his Texan dialect.

"The point I am trying to make, Sheldon, is that you don't see me as a potential mate. You don't find me attractive."

"That's not true. You have a beautiful mind, Amy Farrah Fowler."

"It's not the same," she said, dejectedly. "I can see now that you only value me as a close friend."

"Well, of course. What else would I see you as?" he asked, confused.

Amy sighed. "I suppose I should now consider myself a single woman." She looked at him sadly, then quickly perked up. "Surely there is _someone_ out there who will be attracted by this beckoning pelvis." At that, she walked back to the couch and sat down. Sheldon stood alone in the kitchen, puzzled by the whole conversation.

"I'll never understand women," he said to himself and went to join his friends.

End Part 2

* * *

**A/N: When I started writing an outline for this story, I found myself dividing it up into parts that I imagined would be equal to the length of an episode. So, after putting all of my plot points on a timeline, it came to an even 10 parts. I was very excited to see in your reviews that the you feel the parts are playing out like episodes of the real show, because that's exactly what I intended!**

**As you can probably tell by now, even though I have this listed with Sheldon as the main character, it's really more of an ensemble piece. I love all of the characters and I want each of them to have some time in the spotlight, so I'm hoping all of you reading this feel like I'm doing an okay job at that. **

**Once again, thank you for taking the time to read and I hope you like it. I'll be working on Part 3 this weekend, but my cousin is getting married Saturday and Father's Day is Sunday, so it may take a while to finish it.**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: I'm so sorry that it has taken over a week to get this chapter up. I've been terribly busy and will continue to be terribly busy for the next week. But, my summer class ends June 28, so I will (hopefully) be able to write more often after that. As for the next chapter, I'm not sure when it will be up. I'm probably going to be spending this weekend in academic writing mode and the creative writing will have to wait. But, the good news is that I sat down Tuesday night and completely mapped out the rest of the story (a total of 21 chapters) and I'm very excited about it. Big thanks to all of you reading this.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Big Bang Theory or its characters.**

.

Part 3: The Lunar Eclipse Divergence

Penny came home Friday evening, after a rough day of waitressing, and checked her mail in the lobby. She rifled through the junk mail and grimaced at the bills she knew she'd have trouble paying. The boys walked into the building, each carrying a bag of food. She quickly closed her mailbox and waved at them. "So, what are you guys up to tonight?" she asked. "Oh, wait. Don't tell me. Chinese food and vintage video games." She winked at Leonard. No one understood Sheldon's crazy schedule quite like his unfortunate roommate.

"You are correct," Sheldon claimed. "We also have other plans for later tonight."

"Really? What are you doing?"

Sheldon excitedly replied, "We're staying up all night so that we can see the lunar eclipse. It's going to be the longest one in over ten years!" He smiled happily.

"Wow. Sounds fun." Penny's sarcasm was lost on Sheldon.

"What are your plans?" Leonard asked.

"Oh, I thought I'd ask the girls over and have Margarita Night. After dinner at your place, of course. Or maybe we'll go dancing. Something fun."

When they got to the third floor, Penny knocked on Julie's door. The boys kept walking. "We'll see you upstairs in a minute, Penny," Leonard said over his shoulder. "Tell Julie we picked up some honey chicken for her."

"Okay, I'll let her know." The door opened just as the boys rounded the corner. "Hey, Julie."

"Hey," she said. "Was that Leonard I just heard?"

"Yeah. He said he has your food." Penny smiled brightly. "I was wondering if you'd like to come to my place and hang out with just us girls, after dinner."

"I don't know," she said warily. "I get the feeling Amy doesn't like me very much."

"Aww, come on. Of course she likes you!" Penny could see that Julie was a little skeptical. "Maybe she just doesn't know you well enough yet. But, I was thinking we could have a few margaritas and chat."

"I _guess_ that doesn't sound so bad," Julie said.

"Good. You should totally come. We'll just leave the boys to their video games and stuff and have some girl time. Besides, they're supposed to be watching some lunar eclipse thingie," she said as she waved her hand in the air. "They won't even notice if we're not around."

"Okay," Julie said with a smile. "So, you guys didn't want to watch the eclipse with them?"

"We weren't really invited," Penny replied.

"Oh, that's too bad. I like eclipses." Julie closed and locked her door.

"We'll have more fun without the boys anyway," Penny said as they started walking up the stairs together. "Amy will probably want to have pillow fights and play Truth or Dare. Hopefully she won't suggest Spin the Bottle this time."

* * *

.

Around midnight, the boys put away their Nintendo controllers, grabbed Sheldon's telescope, and made their way up to the roof of the building. They decided to watch the eclipse close to home because Sheldon was with them. They knew he wouldn't want to use the bathroom in the woods or be around nature, so they decided the roof was a good enough place to watch the moon. There were a few lawn chairs already on the roof, so they decided to use them, instead of lugging up furniture from their own apartment.

Sheldon set up his telescope near the roof's edge while the other boys moved the chairs into a circle closer to the door. "What time does this start again, Raj?" Leonard asked.

"The penumbral eclipse starts around 3:30," he answered, "but it won't be total until about 6 in the morning."

"So, why are we already up here?" Howard wanted to know.

Raj replied, "I thought we could set everything up and then go back downstairs to play more video games until it's time for the eclipse."

"No," said Sheldon, surprising the others. "I refuse to leave my telescope up here if no one will be around to watch it. Anyone could just come up here and steal it."

"No one wants to steal your telescope," Leonard said, rolling his eyes at his roommate.

Sheldon looked at him doubtfully. "You can't know that, Leonard."

"Fine," he conceded. "What should we do then? We have a few hours to kill up here."

"Mystic Warlords of Ka'a?" suggested Raj.

Sheldon thought for a minute before proclaiming, "That sounds tolerable."

"Howard and I will go back downstairs and grab the cards and some snacks then."

Leonard had started down the stairs, followed by Howard, when they heard their friend shout, "Don't forget the Red Vines!"

Sheldon adjusted a few of the knobs on his equipment, trying to get the moon into perfect focus. Raj sat down in one of the chairs and looked up at the sky. Soon, the silence became too much for him.

"So, the girls are hanging out tonight," he said. "Don't you want to go have margaritas with Julie?"

Sheldon scoffed at him. "Why would I do that? You know I don't drink alcoholic beverages."

"Dude, you're completely hopeless," said Raj, shaking his head.

"I have no idea to what you are referring." Sheldon had finished adjusting the focus and went over to sit next to his friend.

"You totally like her! You should ask her out."

"I don't know why everyone insists that I like Julie," Sheldon said.

"Well, she's pretty and smart and you stare at her all the time," Raj answered, counting off each point on his fingers.

"I do not stare," Sheldon asserted. "Perhaps I look at her on occasion, but I do not stare."

Raj just looked at him and shook his head. "Okay. Maybe I'll ask her out then." He looked over at Sheldon to gauge his reaction.

"Go right ahead. I don't care."

Raj noticed a muscle spasm in his friend's face. "Hopeless," he muttered to himself.

Leonard and Howard returned with several canned drinks and bags of chips and candy. They were ready for a long night of sky gazing. Leonard pulled the pack of cards from his jacket pocket. "You know, it's getting pretty cold out here. We may need to bring some blankets up later."

"What? And get them dirty on the rooftop?" Sheldon exclaimed. "I don't think so, Leonard."

"Tomorrow's laundry night. You can wash them then." Leonard's rebuttal was sound enough.

"Well, I suppose, if we must…"

Now that the issue of warmth was settled, they got ready for a rousing game of Mystic Warlords of Ka'a. "Look Howard. It's your mom!" Raj said as he played the Screaming Harpy card. Howard glared at him.

Sheldon glanced over at Raj with a look of exasperation. "Not this again," he said.

"Oh boy," said Leonard, "it's gonna be a long night."

* * *

.

"I haven't had an audition in over a month," Penny said as she plopped onto her couch. "I thought the hemorrhoid cream commercial would help, but it hasn't."

"Wait. _Hemorrhoid cream commercial_?" asked Julie, looking at her neighbor curiously. She stared for a few more seconds before her eyebrows rose and she exclaimed, "Oh my goodness! I knew you looked familiar!"

Penny sighed. "Yep. That's me."

Julie mimicked Penny from the commercial. "Sittin' pretty," she said and laughed. "Oh man, that commercial gets me every time." She sat down in a chair, still laughing.

"Well, apparently I'm a one hit wonder."

"I don't see how you do it. Don't you get nervous when you act?" Julie asked her.

"Nope," replied Penny. "Nerves of steel."

"And buns of steel to match," Amy said with a playful smile.

Penny looked at Amy like she was insane.

Julie thought about it for a second and said, "I could never be an actress. I was in a play once in high school. Puked backstage on opening night. I'm just glad my mic wasn't on at the time."

"Gross! Let's not talk about vomit," Bernadette said with a frown. She looked over at Amy, who had just sat down beside her. "So, Amy, how is your research going?"

Amy sat with her hands on her knees. "Oh, I've been working on a new study. I'm examining the effect of LSD on howler monkeys."

"Really? What happened to the capuchins?" asked Bernadette.

"Trust me, you do _not_ want to know."

The other girls looked curious, but decided not to bring it up again.

Amy asked her diminutive friend, "So, what have you been up to at your lab, Bernadette?"

"Well, right now I'm studying a new strain of syphilis."

Julie's dark brown eyes grew wide with shock. "Yikes," she said. "And you thought my puke talk was bad."

Since no one seemed to be in the mood to talk about Bernadette's job, Penny asked their newest friend, "What's it like working in a library?"

Julie shrugged. "Oh, it's nothing special. I sit in an office all day, hear complaints about missing books, order students around, and try not to fall asleep at my desk."

"That sounds pretty nice," said Penny. "Wanna switch jobs for a day? You can have kids throw food at you and skeevy guys pinch your butt. I'll take your cushy office job any day."

"No thanks," Julie replied with a grin.

Penny smiled back and then looked at the other end of the couch. "So, Amy, what's up with you and Sheldon? I noticed you two haven't been hanging out as much lately."

"We've decided to take a break."

"You broke up?" cried Bernadette.

"Technically we were never a couple, as he has so adamantly exclaimed several times. Apparently he is not physically attracted to me." She averted her eyes.

"Oh, Ames," said Penny. "I'm sorry."

"Thank you, Bestie. It seems he has recently met someone else for whom he does feel an attraction."

"Really?" asked Bernadette. "Sheldon likes someone?"

"A girl?" asked Penny. Amy and Bernadette looked at her with dejection and amusement, respectively. Julie just looked confused about the whole conversation.

"Yes, it would appear so," Amy replied. "He denied it, of course, but a woman can always tell. Especially a woman who also happens to excel in the field of neurobiology."

"I can't believe this! You must feel terrible." Penny was angry that Sheldon would treat her friend so horribly.

"I have felt a bit down lately," she said in a depressed tone.

"Well," Penny said as she stood up from the couch, "I think this calls for margaritas." She walked into her kitchen and pulled the blender out of the cabinet. She grabbed some margarita mix from the refrigerator and a bottle of tequila while the girls moved over to the bar. She turned back around and talked while she poured the drink mixture and ice into the blender. "Maybe we can go dancing later. Find some men for us single ladies. Sorry, Bernadette."

Everyone looked at the tiny blonde. "That's okay. I'm happy with my Howie," she said with a smile.

Penny shuddered. "Now _I'm_ gonna puke," she said and hit the blend button.


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: I want to thank everyone again for reviews, favorites, and alerts. I spent the week working on my final paper for class and wishing I was writing this instead so I could get it published as soon as possible. Well, I finished the paper and my summer class yesterday morning, and I started writing this today. This was the quickest chapter I've written so far, so I hope it turned out okay. Now that my class is over, I should have a little more time to work on this story. I'm glad you're all sticking with it.**

**Quick aside: My husband was at the bar after work one day this week when they showed a Big Bang Theory commercial on tv. The guy sitting next to him said, "My wife is a huge fan of that show." My husband looked over at him and said, "My wife writes Big Bang Theory fan fiction.":) I win.**

******Disclaimer: I do not own The Big Bang Theory or its characters.**

.

After several rounds of Mystic Warlords, the four guys grew tired of the game. Sheldon proposed playing Counterfactuals, but was quickly vetoed, so he brought his laptop to the roof and they decided to have a _Firefly_ marathon while waiting for the eclipse. As the night went on, they found themselves drinking more soda and eating more snacks in an attempt to stay awake. However, the caffeine and sugar didn't seem to work well enough.

"I hate to say it, but I don't think Joss Whedon can keep me awake any longer," Leonard said.

"What do you suggest we do then?" asked Sheldon.

"I suppose we could just talk about something," Howard tried to explain his reasoning to the others. "If we have a conversation, we'll have to think about what we're saying and can stay awake longer."

"That makes sense," Raj responded with a shrug. "Since it's vintage video game night, maybe we should talk about some of our favorite video games."

"Ok," Sheldon said. "I'll start. I've been playing _Skyrim_-"

"And hogging the tv," Leonard supplied. Sheldon glared at him. "Well, you have! Last Saturday you played fifteen hours. The only chance I got to play was while you were doing laundry."

Sheldon continued to stare at him. "As I was saying, before I was so rudely interrupted, I've been playing _Skyrim_ and I find it very addictive."

"It is a pretty fun game," Howard admitted.

Leonard replied with a scowl, "I wouldn't know, since I rarely get to play it. I haven't even had a chance to fight a dragon yet!"

"Wow. You _haven't_ played much." said Howard. "Those dragons can be pretty annoying though. They show up wherever I go now. I was just trying to sell some weapons the other day when one showed up in the middle of Whiterun. Of course, I tried to shoot it while it was on the ground and hit a guard instead. They really don't like that."

"Dude, whatever you do, don't kill any chickens. Trust me. I learned about that the hard way," Raj said, frowning.

"I know I haven't had time to play it much, but I don't really like it anyway," said Leonard.

"Wha…don't…don't _like_ it?" Sheldon exclaimed. "How could you not like it, Leonard?"

He yawned and looked at his roommate. "I don't know. I guess I just wish it would let you play the game with other people, you know?"

"Why would you want to play with other people?" asked Sheldon. "It's much better to play with yourself."

His three friends laughed. "Yeah, we're not surprised you'd think so," said Howard through a fit of chuckles.

Sheldon looked momentarily confused, then he realized the cause of their mirth. "That's not what I meant. I don't know why I hang out with you childish imbeciles," he said with contempt.

"Hey now, no need to be rude," said Raj.

"I don't see why you wouldn't like _Skyrim_," Sheldon continued. "It's a wonderfully complex game. There are so many different quest lines. I've already become the Guildmaster of the Thieves' Guild, I'm the leader of the Dark Brotherhood, I've won the Civil War and destroyed Alduin. I'm currently on my way to becoming the Archmage of the College of Winterhold."

Raj, Howard, and Leonard listened while he continued his speech, listing all of the reasons the game was considered one of the best of the year. As he spoke, they became sleepier. Soon, Leonard found himself cuddling up in his chair, pulling a blanket up to his chin. He looked over at Howard and Raj. They were sitting on the ground on a pallet they had made from an afghan. They had their jackets pulled tight and were sharing a ratty, old quilt. Raj yawned and Howard followed suit. Sheldon's voice droned on through the night.

After talking for about fifteen minutes straight, he looked up and noticed the eclipse. "Oh, look, it's starting!" he cried with glee and was answered with a snore. Glancing over at his friends, he saw that they had all fallen asleep. He tried to wake each of them.

When he shook Howard, the shorter man softly said, "Five more minutes, Ma," and turned on his side. Raj made no response and Leonard only snored louder. So, all alone, Sheldon sat back in his chair, looked up at the sky, and watched the eclipse.

"I guess when you've seen one eclipse, you've seen them all," he said with a sigh. He slowly chewed on a Red Vine and watched the moon by himself. After finishing his snack, he wrapped the blanket around his lanky form and tried in vain to keep his eyes open. "It really is quite pretty," he said, just before his eyes closed in sleep.

* * *

.

By midnight, the girls had realized there was no way they could go out dancing unless they took a taxi. However, they were having such a good time hanging out together in Penny's apartment, they didn't care either way. The margaritas had gone over very well and all four of them had a buzz. Penny and Amy were both in better moods after two drinks each. After their second round of drinks, Amy rallied for a game of Truth of Dare, just as Penny had warned Julie earlier that night. After a few truths and dares, one of which ended in Bernadette spewing cinnamon all over Penny's kitchen, it was Julie's turn for the question. She chose truth.

"Ok," Penny said. "So, let's say you are stranded on a desert island with one of the boys. Which of the boys would you rather be stuck with and why?"

"Well, that's a weird Truth question, but ok. Let me think about it," she said.

"Think out loud," said Bernadette. She giggled and took another sip of her drink.

"Ok. Well, I guess I couldn't choose Raj, because he'd never talk to me. Unless I could find a way to ferment coconut milk or something. I guess he could write stuff in the sand for me to read, though. Is he able to do that? I know he can't talk to girls, but can he write to them?"

"Um, I think he can. Seems like I've gotten a text or two from him," said Penny.

"Oh. Ok. That might work."

"So, you'd pick Raj, then?" asked Amy.

Julie shook her head. "That's not my final answer. I'm still thinking. Howard _could_ be fun to be stuck with. He'd make me laugh, anyway. But, he'd probably hit on me, too, and I can't go for that. No offense, Bernadette."

"None taken."

"Leonard would be okay to have around, but he squints all the time and that would get pretty annoying after a while." She imitated Leonard and the girls laughed. She thought about it for a minute more and finally said, "I guess I'd have to go with Sheldon. At least he'd always have something interesting to say. And he's really smart, so he could probably figure out a way for both of us to survive."

"Oooooooooh, Julie likes Sheldon," Bernadette teased. Penny laughed along with her, until they realized their new friend was blushing.

"Oh my GOD!" cried Penny. "You really _do_ like him!"

"What's wrong with that?" Julie asked.

"It's Sheldon!" exclaimed Penny. She thought it was pretty unbelievable that two of her friends could like the same guy, especially when that guy was Sheldon Cooper.

"Well, he's cute and smart," Julie said. "Of course, he's also… how do I put this?"

"Arrogant?" Penny said.

"Crazy?" replied Bernadette.

"Sexy?" Amy said with a sad sigh. They all looked at Amy.

"I was gonna say 'oblivious,' but okay," Julie said. "I'm sorry, Amy. I shouldn't even be talking about him at all. He's off limits."

"No," said Amy. "It's okay. I'll get over it. Besides, I can't be mad at you for liking him, especially not when he's also attracted to you."

"What?" asked Julie. "Did he tell you that?"

"He didn't have to tell me. As I said before, I figured it out on my own."

"You mean, I'm the reason you two broke up?" Julie asked, shocked.

"Technically, yes, I suppose you are."

"Oh, God," she moaned. "I feel awful now. I swear, I didn't know. He's usually a complete ass around me."

"Oh, sweetie," said Penny. "He's a complete ass around everybody."

"I still feel terrible. I am so sorry, Amy."

Amy just brushed off her comment. "Don't worry about it. It never could have been anything more than a fling anyway. After all, I'm already engaged."

Penny spit out a mouthful of margarita. "You WHAT!" she shouted.

"Penny!" Bernadette cried, wiping drops of the drink off her skirt.

"Sorry," she said to the blonde sitting beside her. She turned back to Amy. "What do you mean you're already engaged?"

"I've told you about Faisal."

"Uh, no," said Penny, still confused.

"He's the Saudi Arabian prince who funds my research," Amy explained for everyone's benefit.

"Well, that's pretty neat," said Bernadette.

"Yes," Amy said. "I'm certain I'll have more of a chance of getting some lovin' with him than I ever did with Sheldon."

"Oh, that's probably true," Penny stated. "Julie, I hate to tell you, but you have your work cut out for you if you're gonna go after Sheldon."

"Hmmm…" she said. "Challenge accepted." The other girls laughed, knowing it would be interesting to see the outcome of Julie trying to woo her neighbor.

"You know," Bernadette said to Julie, "I was so afraid you were going to be another Priya, but I think you'll fit in just fine."

"Who's Priya?" Julie asked. Penny rolled her eyes and started to explain.

* * *

.

On the rooftop of the apartment building at 2311 North Los Robles Avenue, the sun was shining brightly on four nerds as they slept. Leonard was bundled in layers of jackets and a blanket, with his glasses askew but still on his face. Sheldon had curled into the fetal position sometime during the night, possibly to fit his whole body under one tiny blanket. Howard and Raj were spooning under the quilt, both smiling.

A car alarm sounded in the distance, bringing them all to sudden wakefulness. Raj and Howard had the decency to look embarrassed at their closeness. They had just backed away from each other when Raj looked up at the sky and cried out, "Oh no! We missed the eclipse."

Sheldon pouted and said, "Who cares about the eclipse. I missed Doctor Who!"

End Part 3

* * *

**A/N: In case you were wondering, this takes place after midnight on December 10, 2011. Yes, there was a lunar eclipse very early that morning in California.**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: I am terribly sorry I've taken so long to post this. This is one of the original scenes that popped in my head when I first thought of this story. I've been impatiently waiting to write it for a while now. Of course, once I finally started writing, it didn't end up the way I wanted, so I had to scrap it and start over. But, I'm finally done with it and I think you guys will like this one. Fingers crossed. The next half of Part 4 should be up very soon, hopefully sometime this weekend. Anyway, enjoy! I probably won't be publishing anything next week because I will be in New York watching Jim Parsons in **_**Harvey**_**!**

**Disclaimer: I do not own The Big Bang Theory or its characters.**

.

Part 4: The Intolerable Ailment Catalyst

When Leonard stepped out of his bedroom one mid-January morning, he noticed a distinct lack of sound in the apartment. There was no rush of running water in the bathroom, no noise from the television, and no clatter of a cereal bowl in the sink. He cautiously walked down the hallway and peeked into the silent living room. There was no sign of Sheldon. He shrugged and walked toward the coffee pot. It was while he was pouring the hot liquid into his usual mug that he heard the sniffle. Pausing mid-pour, he looked toward the hallway and listened for another sound. He heard a cough. His eyes widened and he raced as quietly as possible down the hallway, abandoning his mug of coffee on the countertop. He was back in the living room moments later, checking his pockets for his keys and wallet, when a weak voice drifted from the hallway.

"Leonard…" it said.

"Shit," Leonard muttered to himself. He eyed the hallway, waiting for the inevitable next sentence.

"Leonard, I'm sick," came Sheldon's voice.

Leonard looked between the hallway and the front door several times before finally inching toward the exit. He silently walked out the door, closing it firmly. Once outside, he relaxed against the wall and pulled out his phone. He sent a quick three word text to Howard and Raj, knowing they would understand its meaning. After all, "Code Milky Green" could only mean one thing.

Inside Sheldon's bedroom, the invalid was still weakly calling for his roommate. Receiving no answer, he realized that he was alone. He texted Leonard, Howard, and Raj, but he had a feeling he would get no answer from them. He knew they hated taking care of him when he was sick, but he couldn't understand why.

His next thought was to call Penny. She had taken care of him before and even admonished the others for abandoning him in his weak state. Surely she would do it again. However, he quickly remembered that she was out of town, having a spa weekend with Bernadette and her fellow bridesmaids. "Drat," he said, as he realized that Amy was with her. That meant the only person around who might be able to nurse him back to health was the newest member of their group. Groaning, he texted Julie.

"_Julie, would you be so kind as to come to my apartment and fix me soup. I am sick._"

He waited for an answer. After about five minutes, he got it. "_Are you serious? You can't fix your own soup?_"

"_Of course I can't. I'm sick,_" was his reply.

"_Why can't Leonard do it?_"

"_He ran away._"

"_I'm already at work. I'll come by on my lunch break. Just drink some juice or something._"

Satisfied with her answer, but still hungry, he put his phone on his nightstand and curled up under the covers.

* * *

.

Julie knocked on the door a little after noon. Sheldon answered the door and she laughed when she saw that he was cocooned in his comforter. "How can I help you, Sheldon?" she asked him.

"You may help me by making me some soup," he said. "Chicken noodle. Heated to 180 degrees exactly."

"Um," she said confusedly, "okay. Chicken noodle soup it is, then. Where do you keep the cans?"

"They're in the second cabinet to the right of the refrigerator. Bottom shelf."

"Okay. I'll get right on it," she said as she headed toward the kitchen. As Sheldon shuffled back toward his room, she asked if he wanted tea with it.

"Well of course I do. With honey and lemon. The honey is in the first –"

"I'll find it, Sheldon. You go rest now."

He made his way down the hallway while Julie filled the tea kettle. She hummed to herself while she opened the can of soup and poured it into the first pan she found. She smiled and shook her head at the organized kitchen. _Maybe I should get Sheldon to put my kitchen in order_, she thought to herself.

When the soup was done to Sheldon's specifications, she poured it into a bowl and grabbed a spoon from the silverware drawer. The tea was steaming in a nearby mug. She walked down the hall and knocked on his bedroom door. "Yes?" he said from inside.

She opened the door and took a step inside.

"People can't be in my bedroom, Julie," he cried.

"People!" she said dramatically. "I ain't people!"

"'Ain't' is not a word," he proclaimed.

"Yes, I am aware of that," she sighed. "It's a line from a movie. Nevermind. Your soup's ready. Want me to bring it in here?"

"Why would I want soup in my room? I can't eat in my room."

"I should have known," she muttered to herself. "It's on the kitchen counter," she said to him. With that, she walked back down the hall. He hurried along behind her, grasping his comforter tighter to his body.

"Where are you going?" he asked.

"Home. I have to eat lunch and get back to work."

"You can't leave! Who will put Vaporub on my chest?"

She thought about it for a minute. "Fine. I'll stay. But, I still need lunch. I'll go eat at my apartment and be back in a few minutes."

Sheldon nodded and she walked out. He sat down and ate his food while he waited for her to return. When she came back in, he led her to his room. "I thought you said people aren't allowed in here," she said when they went inside.

"You have permission to enter, just this once."

She smiled while he was turned the other way.

He lay on the bed and pointed at the small jar of ointment on his dresser. She sighed and picked it up while he snuggled under his sheets. She was momentarily distracted when he unbuttoned his pajama top and pulled down his white t-shirt to reveal his chest, but she shook it off and opened the jar. She wrinkled her nose as she dipped her fingers into the substance. She rubbed her hands together.

"What are you doing?" he asked.

"Warming it up first so it's not cold when I put it on you," she replied.

"Oh. Okay. Rub it counter-clockwise, please," he said when he was convinced she knew what she was doing.

She pressed her hands on his chest and started moving them in a circle. She could feel his heart thumping in his chest. It seemed to gain speed as she slowly moved her hands. She looked at his face, but he averted his eyes and blushed. "I'm feeling quite feverish," he said in an attempt to explain his red face. "Perhaps you should leave before you get sick too."

"I'll be fine, Sheldon. I rarely get sick." She stopped rubbing his chest and put the lid back on the jar.

"I think I should sleep now," he said.

"That's probably a good idea. I'll go hang out in the living room. If you need me, just call my name."

She started walking toward his bedroom door, but stopped when he asked her to wait.

"I need to hear 'Soft Kitty' before I can fall asleep," he said.

Julie looked confused. "I don't know what that is," she said.

"It's a song for when you're sick," he explained. "My mother always sings it to me."

Julie laughed, but then she realized that he wasn't joking. "Wait. You're serious?"

"Of course I am. I don't joke about 'Soft Kitty.'"

"Well, I'm sorry, but I don't know that song. I could probably learn it if you taught me," she said.

"I want Penny to sing it."

"Penny's not here, Sheldon."

"Can you call her?"

Julie thought about telling him no and leaving, but his sad puppy face made the decision for her. She pulled out her phone and dialed Penny's number. She put it on speakerphone.

"Hey, Julie! What's up?" Penny asked.

"Oh, nothing much. Just nursing Sheldon back to health." She heard Penny groan. "You're on speaker, by the way."

"Oh," Penny said. "So, why'd you call? I'm in the middle of a massage."

"Would you mind singing 'Soft Kitty' for Sheldon? He says he wants to hear you sing it or he can't fall asleep."

They heard a sigh from the other end of the line. "Okay, fine. But, I'm only singing it once." With that, she began to sing the simple tune. When it was over, Sheldon looked satisfied. "Is that all?" Penny asked.

"Yep. Thanks, Penny," Julie replied.

There was muffled talking on the other end of the line, then a gasp. "Oh, God!" Penny cried suddenly. "The masseuse just asked if I was singing to my kid. I'm going to kill you guys when I get home!"

Julie grimaced. "Sorry. We'll see you Sunday!" She hung up the phone before Penny could say anything else. "Ok, great. We've managed to embarrass Penny, but at least you got your song. Time to nap now," she said as she began to tuck him in. He already had his eyes closed and seemed unsympathetic to Penny's plight. Julie shook her head and got up from her position on the edge of his bed. She quietly exited the room.

Once in the living room, she scanned Sheldon and Leonard's stack of DVDs and picked something to watch while Sheldon napped. It was going to be a long day.

* * *

.

Leonard spent as much time as possible avoiding the apartment that day. He stayed later than usual at work and went out to a restaurant for dinner. For once, he didn't have to drive anyone around town or eat the standard Friday night fare. It was a nice change of pace. He met Howard at the comic book store after dinner. Although he'd just been there two nights before, it was a different experience without Sheldon around.

"So, are you going home tonight or will you be driving around town until Sheldon feels better?" Howard asked him.

"Oh, I'll go home eventually. I'll just wait until he's asleep," Leonard answered. "He sticks to his schedule even when he's sick."

Howard nodded and continued staring at the newest Wonder Woman bust. "That woman definitely has a nice pair of… wonders," he said. Leonard looked at him in disgust. "What? I'm just trying to appreciate the finer things in life."

Leonard shook his head and walked away. Howard eventually followed.

"So, where's Raj?" Leonard asked. "I thought he was going to meet us here."

Howard shrugged. "No idea. He texted me and said he'd be a little late. He had something important to do, but he wouldn't tell me what it was."

At that moment, Raj walked through the door, followed by an unexpected visitor. Leonard looked up to see Priya walking toward him. Raj had an apologetic look on his face.

"Hi, Leonard," she said as she moved toward him.

"Priya," Leonard said noncommittally.

"I'm sorry to just show up like this, but I had a conference in town and I thought it might be nice to see you. You haven't been answering my calls."

"No, I haven't," he confirmed.

"Leonard, I really think we should talk."

He silently flipped through the rows of comic books without looking at her.

"Please," she said.

Eyes still downcast, he replied, "Fine." He looked around then. "But not here. Meet me tomorrow morning at Peet's on South Lake. I need to go to the lab tomorrow, and it's on the way."

"Oh, are you working on something important?" she asked.

"No. I'm just trying to stay out of the apartment. Sheldon's sick."

"Oh, ok," she said, "Well, I'll see you tomorrow then." She walked back over to Raj, grabbed his keys, and walked out the door. Leonard relaxed.

"Dude, I forgot she was coming to town," Raj said. "She wanted to see you. I didn't know what to do."

"It's fine, Raj," he said. "Really."

Raj still looked embarrassed. "Well, I guess I'd better go. She's waiting in the car. Sorry I can't stay and hang out." He waved at them as he left.

"This weekend just keeps getting better and better," Leonard complained.

* * *

.

Sheldon rubbed the sleep out of his eyes as he walked down the hallway. He'd heard sounds coming from the living room, but couldn't figure out why they were so familiar. When he got to the living room, he saw Julie lounging on the couch, in his spot.

"Move," he said, which brought her attention to the ailing physicist. "You're in my spot."

"Oops," she said as she scooted over to the middle cushion. "Feeling better?"

"No." He shuffled into the kitchen and poured himself a glass of apple juice before going into the living room to sit next to her. "What are you doing?"

"Watching _BSG_," she said. "It's the one where Helo is investigating the Sagittaron deaths. Not a very exciting episode, but at least it's better than 'Black Market.'"

Sheldon stared at her with eyes wide. "You like _Battlestar Galactica_?" he asked.

"Yeah. It's pretty awesome. I don't have the DVDs though."

"You're watching my DVDs without my permission?"

"What was I supposed to do?" she asked. "You didn't want me to leave, and you were asleep so I couldn't ask. I can't just sit here and twiddle my thumbs all day, you know."

"Very well. Please ask me the next time you decide to use my things," he said.

"You wanna watch with me?" she asked him, tilting her head to the side.

"I suppose so," he answered. "It is a very good show, after all. I can't turn down an invitation like that."

She grinned at him and turned back to face the TV. Without warning, she sneezed. Sheldon leaned away in horror, pulling the neck of his t-shirt up to cover face.

"Sorry. I think I may have caught whatever bug you've got," she said.

"You don't know that for certain," he said, his voice muffled by the cotton shirt. "Maybe you have something else. There's no telling what diseases you may possibly have." He glared at her over the fabric.

She glared back. "That was very insulting, Sheldon. I don't have to be here, you know. I'm only doing this to help out a friend."

"You mean, we're friends?" asked Sheldon curiously.

"Well, I should hope so! I don't just cook soup for anybody." She smiled at him then and he smiled back.

He sat for a minute in thought and slowly lowered his makeshift mask. "Okay. But if I do get sick again, I'm blaming you."

"Deal." She nodded. "So, how would you even know if you had two sicknesses at once?"

"I'm a scientist. I would just know," he said with a smirk.

She merely laughed and turned back to the watch the show.

* * *

.

Leonard arrived home a little after midnight. When he walked in the door, he was shocked to see the two people on the couch. Sheldon was in his spot, of course, and Julie was beside him. They were both asleep. He was amazed at how comfortable they looked together. Julie's head was resting lightly on his roommate's shoulder. They were both wrapped up in blankets and the _Battlestar Galactica_ DVD menu was on the TV. Leonard tiptoed silently into his bedroom, leaving the couple to their sleep.

Julie awoke at the sound of Leonard's bedroom door closing. She sat upright and looked over at Sheldon resting peacefully. She softly patted his rumpled hair and moved her hand down to rest on his cheek for a moment. "Poor baby," she said. She removed her hand and got up from the couch without disturbing him. She turned off the TV and left for her own apartment with a smile on her face.

Hours later, Sheldon woke up complaining to himself about the crick in his neck, but he lost his train of thought when he vaguely remembered a soft, warm hand on his cheek during the night. He groggily walked to his room and drifted off to sleep again, dreaming of his neighbor's soft, brown hair cascading over his shoulder. It smelled like mango.


	8. Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: I do not own **_**The Big Bang Theor**_**y or its characters.**

.

Julie shuffled to the door as the knocking continued. "Hold on a minute," she said to the person waiting outside. She opened the door to find Leonard staring at her.

"Umm,' he said, "you have some tissue stuck to your face." He pointed at her nose.

"Shit," she muttered as she wiped at her nose. "I'm a mess. What do you need?"

"Well, I was going to ask if you could take care of Sheldon today, but it looks like you might need someone to take care of you instead."

"It's just a head cold," she said. "It'll go away soon. So, why do you keep leaving him alone when he's sick?"

"You've seen how he is. I can't deal with him when he's like that," Leonard complained. "He's already awake this morning, demanding tea."

"He's not that bad," she replied. She thought about it for a second and added, "But maybe that's because he slept most of the day. He made me call Penny so she could sing some cat song to him."

He laughed. "Oh yeah, that would be 'Soft Kitty.' I guess he doesn't know you well enough to teach you yet."

"So, where are you off to this morning?" she asked.

"Oh, I have to meet… someone. Then I'm going to the office to get some stuff done. So, you'll check on Sheldon today?"

"Sure. I'll see you later, Leonard."

"See ya," he said and started down the stairs.

She walked back to her bedroom and fell onto the bed. "Well, it won't kill him to wait a couple of hours while I nap."

Before she could fall asleep, her phone rang. Sheldon claimed that he needed her, so she started getting dressed, grumbling the whole time.

* * *

.

Leonard walked into the coffee shop and ordered his coffee. He looked around but saw no sign of his ex-girlfriend. Once he had his coffee in hand, he found a seat and waited. She came in a few minutes later and sat with him.

"Thanks for seeing me," she said. "I really wanted to talk to you."

"Yes, you made that clear with every text and phone call over the past three months," he said with contempt.

"Leonard, please don't be like that. We talked about all of this before I moved back to India. You knew how hard it was going to be to keep a long distance relationship going."

"Yeah, I know." He took a sip of his coffee and continued. "I just thought maybe ours would be different. I didn't expect you to go off and sleep with your ex! I was hoping, if we did break up, it would be because we grew apart, not because you cheated on me."

"Well, technically, we both cheated," she said. Leonard didn't seem to want to hear that, even though it was the truth. "Why are you really mad? Is it because I slept with someone else or that you didn't?"

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that you wanted to sleep with that girl and you didn't. Now, I think you're regretting it. I think you're mad at yourself more than at me."

"No. I'm pretty sure I'm mad at you," he said crossly.

Priya let him quietly fume for a few minutes before she asked, "So, who was the girl?"

"Her name was Alice. I met her at the comic book store."

"I always thought, if you cheated on me, it would be with Penny," she confessed and looked him straight in the eye.

He turned away. "Why would you think that?" he asked.

"Don't try to hide it, Leonard. I could see the way you mooned over her while we were together. And I could tell she was jealous of us. There was still something between you two. Why do you think I asked you to stop hanging out with her?"

"That's ridiculous!" he shouted. A few people in the coffee shop turned and looked at him. He bowed his head sheepishly.

Despite his shout of protest, she calmly continued. "No, it's not. I was always your second choice. I knew that."

"Priya," he whined.

"Look," she said with a sigh, "I know it was wrong for me to cheat on you. I can't take it back and I don't want to. Vikram and I are back together and it's better this time. I'm not mad at you for wanting to be with Penny. It's fine. I just wanted you to know that I'm okay with how things turned out. And, I really want to know if you can forgive me for what I did."

He took a large gulp of his coffee and thought about her question. If he was being honest with himself, everything she had said was true. He had to admit it. Now that they had talked, he realized that he wasn't mad at Priya. So, he smiled at her and said, "Yes. I forgive you."

She smiled back. "I'm glad to hear that."

"So, are you happy with him?" he asked.

"Very."

"That's good."

"Is anything going on between you and Penny?"

"We're just friends. That's the way she wants it. Maybe one day though." He decided then that it might be best to change the subject. "So, how's the conference going?" he asked.

They sat and talked for an hour.

* * *

.

"You look terrible," Sheldon said as Julie walked into his apartment.

"Gee, thanks," was her reply.

"Sarcasm?" he asked.

"Yes."

"I'm getting much better!" he exclaimed to himself.

"That's nice. So, how are you feeling today?"

"I'm still sick," he said.

"If you didn't notice, I'm not feeling so great myself."

"Maybe you should have some tea," he said. "Tea makes me feel better when I'm sick."

"I would love some," she said.

"Oh good. Would you make some for me too?"

Her jaw dropped and she stared at him in disbelief. "You have _got_ to be kidding me!' she said. She saw the look of confusion on his face at her reaction. She shook her head. "Fine. I'll make us some tea."

When the tea was done, she joined him on the couch. "I'm assuming you'll be staying here with me today while Leonard is gone," he said.

"Yeah. Leonard said he had some important work to do at the university."

Sheldon scoffed. "I would not define his work at the university as 'important.' And would you please stop sniffling like that. It's making me uncomfortable."

"I can't help it. I'm sick."

"Perhaps I should get the Vaporub."

She looked shocked. "Really? You'd rub that stuff on my chest?"

"I never said that!" he cried. She looked over at him and noticed he was blushing. He averted his eyes. "I can't touch your chest, Julie."

She grinned cheekily and leaned closer to him. "It's okay. I don't mind."

He jumped up from the couch, almost making her spill hot tea in her lap. "It wouldn't be gentlemanly of me," he said and ran out of the room.

She yelled after him, "Oh, fine. I'll rub it on myself, you big baby!" She set her mug on the table and slumped down in her seat. Raising her voice had taken a lot more energy than she'd expected.

When he came back into the room, he noticed how fatigued she looked. "Here," he said as he shoved the jar in her face, "I brought this for you. I hope you have finished screaming now."

She opened her eyes and looked up at him forlornly. "Thanks, Sheldon." She took the jar. "I'm just a bit frustrated."

"Why would you be frustrated? You get to take care of me."

"That's exactly why I'm frustrated," she said. "You see, I don't feel well and you still expect me to play your nursemaid. Who's going to make _me_ feel better?"

"I just brought you Vaporub. Does that not count?"

"Yeah, I guess it does. Thanks."

"Would you like some soup?" he asked.

"Do I have to cook it myself?"

"No. I will do the cooking. You look quite feverish and I think it would be best if you didn't spread your germs all over my kitchen. I'm already going to need to disinfect everything in there, since you made our tea. I would prefer it if you didn't go back in there."

"I have no problem with that," she said. She opened the ointment and spread some on her chest while Sheldon went into the kitchen to make the soup. When she was done, she rested her head on the arm of the couch and closed her eyes, breathing in the camphor and menthol fumes.

When the soup was heated, Sheldon brought it into the living room and set it down on the table. "Julie, you should eat your soup before it gets cold."

She sat up and they ate together. When they were done, he asked if she'd like to watch _Star Trek: The Original Series_. "I've never seen it before," she told him.

"Never seen it before!" he said in shock. "You must watch it. It is one of the best television series ever made."

"Ok. I'll watch it. I've seen some episodes of _The Next Generation_. I watched it as a kid. I had a crush on Wesley Crusher," she admitted.

He looked at her with wide eyes. "Wesley was my favorite character. He had an eidetic memory, like me."

"Hmmm…," she said quietly, "maybe that's why I like you so much."

He paused momentarily at her statement, then put the DVD into the player. When he came back to sit beside her, he said, "Wil Wheaton is a friend of mine. Perhaps I could introduce you to him someday."

She nodded. "That would be nice."

He selected an episode and they began to watch. She soon fell asleep while he spouted bits of trivia about the show and its characters.

* * *

.

By Monday night, things were back to normal. Sheldon and Julie were no longer sick, so Leonard was able to come and go from the apartment without sneaking, and the girls were back from their spa weekend.

"I'm glad to see you're feeling better, Moon Pie," Penny said to Sheldon. "I still can't believe you made Julie call me to sing to you."

"It was completely necessary," he replied. "And, as I've told you before, only Meemaw calls me Moon Pie."

Penny rolled her eyes at her crazy neighbor and turned to Julie. "I guess you had a fun weekend, then?"

"Well, it would have been better if I hadn't been sick. But, Sheldon was nice and let me hang out here and watch TV with him. He even made me soup."

Penny looked at her in shock. "_Sheldon_ made you soup? Are you sure you weren't hallucinating?"

"Nope. No hallucinations. I'm sure he was just trying to reciprocate, since I made him soup the day before."

"Wow. That doesn't sound like Sheldon," Penny said. She then leaned toward her friend and whispered into her ear, "Maybe he really does like you." She raised an eyebrow.

Julie smiled and said, "Maybe."

Leonard noticed the secretive whispers between the two girls with curiosity."So, how was the spa?"He asked.

"Oh, it was nice," Penny answered. "Very… interesting. Bernadette, I think you had something to ask Julie?"

Bernadette nodded. "Julie," she said, "I know we haven't known each other long, but I was wondering if you'd like to be a bridesmaid in the wedding."

"That's so sweet, Bernadette! I'd love to," she said happily.

"Great!"

"But," Julie continued, "I thought you already had three bridesmaids."

"I did, but Elise, my cousin, dropped out."

"Why?"

"Well," Bernadette began, "while we were at the spa this weekend, Amy got a little _too_ into her duties as Maid of Honor."

"What was she doing?" Leonard asked.

"She kept claiming that we were going to have some sort of fertility ceremony for the bachelorette party where we'd all be naked. I think it creeped out Elise. I tried to tell her that Amy was just kidding, but she didn't believe me."

"Yeah," Penny said, "especially after she caught Amy drawing fertility signs on the hotel's stationery."

"So, that's not really going to happen at the party, right?" asked Julie.

"Of course not!" cried Bernadette. "Or, at least, I told her that I don't want to do that. She's supposed to get together with Penny to plan the party, just in case."

"Ok, then," Julie said. "I'm in."

"Good. Sheldon can escort you," Bernadette said with a wink. Julie and Sheldon looked at each other then and both blushed.

"Did anything else happen while we were gone?" asked Penny. "What did you guys do?" She looked at Howard, Raj, and Leonard.

Howard muttered something about the comic book store and Leonard said that he'd spent most of his time working at the lab. Raj, who was sans alcohol, said nothing. Priya's visit went unmentioned.

End Part 4

* * *

**A/N: I feel like the end of this chapter is weird, but there you go. I'll start writing Chapter 9 when I return from New York. Thanks for reading**


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